Bishop Egan to open centre dedicated to New Evangelisation

The centre will be based on the island of Alderney (image: visitalderney.com)

The Adoremus Centre on Alderney will be a 'powerhouse of prayer'

Bishop Philip Egan of Portsmouth will open a centre dedicated to evangelisation next month.

The Adoremus Centre on Alderney, a three-mile long Channel Island, will consist of a priest, Fr John Lavers, and at least six Franciscan Sisters.

Bishop Egan said he hoped it would grow into a “powerhouse of prayer” in support of the “New Evangelisation” – that is, proclaiming the Gospel to a secularised society.

The Sisters – part of the Franciscan family of the Immaculate Heart and St Maximilian – will support evangelisation through prayer, petition, self-offering and perpetual adoration.

The centre will also be a “house of prayer” for vocations to all states of life and ministry in the Church, but particularly to the priesthood.

Once established, the faithful will be invited to send email petitions related to the work of evangelisation, vocation and discipleship.

Mass and other liturgical ceremonies at the centre will be broadcast live on the internet each day. In a letter to parishioners on Alderney, Bishop Egan said: “Given the challenges Catholics face in evangelising contemporary culture, I believe this project, which is about our total dependence on God’s providence, is crucial both for the future of the diocese and for the peoples of our lands.

“So I wish to invite you, the people of the parish, to join Fr John and the Sisters in this new venture and to support it in every way you can, so that Alderney can become a powerhouse of prayer supporting our diocese.”

Fr Lavers will be the island’s first resident parish priest in six years.